Former astronaut and U.S. Senator John Glenn has died at age 95.
Glenn died at the James Cancer Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, where he was hospitalized for more than a week, said Hank Wilson, communications director for the John Glenn School of Public Affairs.
Soon after his birth in Cambridge, Ohio, in 1921, it became clear that Glenn had aspirations out of this world. Glenn expressed an interest in flight and it stayed with him.
Glenn landed at Muskingum College in Concord, Ohio, studying engineering. He got his pilot's license to earn credit in a physics course, which we now know was a move that would pave his way into the history books.
When World War II started, Glenn left college and became a Marine pilot. He flew 59 combat missions in WWII and 90 combat missions in the Korean War.
After his military duty ended, Glenn trained other pilots and became a test pilot. He broke a speed record in 1957 flying from Los Angeles to New York in three hours and 23 minutes.
Glenn upped his goals from piloting planes to piloting spaceships.
In 1959, he was selected as one of seven astronauts for Project Mercury. Glenn, Alan Shepard,and Virgil "Gus" Grissom made suborbital flights. Glenn was the oldest crew member aboard at 41.
In 1962, Glenn became the first American to orbit the Earth in Friendship 7. He circled the globe three times in just under five hours.
Back on the ground and retired from NASA, Glenn set his sights on his home state of Ohio and making a difference in politics. In 1974, he was elected to the U.S. Senate, where he served for almost 25 years.
Soon after his retirement from the Senate, NASA came calling again: 77-year-old John Glenn went back into space aboard the shuttle Discovery.
Before the historic mission, WLWT met with Glenn on Capitol Hill. We followed him to the Johnson Space Center in Houston when his training began, and then to the Kennedy Space Center in Florida for the October 1998 flight that made Glenn the oldest person ever to venture into space.
Awards and honors followed in the years after his shuttle mission. Glenn also lectured and taught at Ohio institutions, including Ohio State University.
In his late 80s and early 90s, Glenn’s health had its ups and downs. His vision started to fail, and then heart trouble slowed him down.
Glenn apologized for his poor eyesight this year at the renaming of Columbus' airport after him. He said then he'd lost some of his eyesight because of macular degeneration and a small stroke. Glenn had a heart valve replacement in 2014.
Ohio beginnings, two wars, space travel and decades in Washington … and through it all, his wife Annie was by his side. They celebrated their 73rd wedding anniversary in April.
Glenn often said the most important thing we can do is inspire young minds and to advance the kind of science, math and technology education that takes us to the next phase of space travel.
Mission accomplished through a legacy that will live on.

Former astronaut and U.S. Senator John Glenn has died at age 95.

Glenn died at the James Cancer Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, where he was hospitalized for more than a week, said Hank Wilson, communications director for the John Glenn School of Public Affairs.

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Soon after his birth in Cambridge, Ohio, in 1921, it became clear that Glenn had aspirations out of this world. Glenn expressed an interest in flight and it stayed with him.

Glenn landed at Muskingum College in Concord, Ohio, studying engineering. He got his pilot's license to earn credit in a physics course, which we now know was a move that would pave his way into the history books.

When World War II started, Glenn left college and became a Marine pilot. He flew 59 combat missions in WWII and 90 combat missions in the Korean War.

After his military duty ended, Glenn trained other pilots and became a test pilot. He broke a speed record in 1957 flying from Los Angeles to New York in three hours and 23 minutes.

Glenn upped his goals from piloting planes to piloting spaceships.

In 1959, he was selected as one of seven astronauts for Project Mercury. Glenn, Alan Shepard,and Virgil "Gus" Grissom made suborbital flights. Glenn was the oldest crew member aboard at 41.

In 1962, Glenn became the first American to orbit the Earth in Friendship 7. He circled the globe three times in just under five hours.

Back on the ground and retired from NASA, Glenn set his sights on his home state of Ohio and making a difference in politics. In 1974, he was elected to the U.S. Senate, where he served for almost 25 years.

Soon after his retirement from the Senate, NASA came calling again: 77-year-old John Glenn went back into space aboard the shuttle Discovery.

Before the historic mission, WLWT met with Glenn on Capitol Hill. We followed him to the Johnson Space Center in Houston when his training began, and then to the Kennedy Space Center in Florida for the October 1998 flight that made Glenn the oldest person ever to venture into space.

Awards and honors followed in the years after his shuttle mission. Glenn also lectured and taught at Ohio institutions, including Ohio State University.

In his late 80s and early 90s, Glenn’s health had its ups and downs. His vision started to fail, and then heart trouble slowed him down.

Glenn apologized for his poor eyesight this year at the renaming of Columbus' airport after him. He said then he'd lost some of his eyesight because of macular degeneration and a small stroke. Glenn had a heart valve replacement in 2014.

Ohio beginnings, two wars, space travel and decades in Washington … and through it all, his wife Annie was by his side. They celebrated their 73rd wedding anniversary in April.

Glenn often said the most important thing we can do is inspire young minds and to advance the kind of science, math and technology education that takes us to the next phase of space travel.